Accidental actress Sana’a Shaik’s alien themed terrarium

Sana’a Shaik finds inspiration in the most unusual of ways and places.

Actress Sana'a Shaik, Picture: John Appleyard

Accidental actor Sana’a Shaik, 30, was so unsure what she wanted to do after earning her Commerce degree in Perth that she promptly did a Masters degree in management.

“I do really appreciate that degree because it (brought) me over (to Sydney), even though I don’t use it ever,” she says.

“I only worked in finance for four years, but it is a good reminder of what you can achieve, because it was very hard to do.”

After first meeting in entry level positions at financial services company Challenger, Shaik married longtime partner Jordan Berta, 30, late last year. The newlyweds will celebrate at a September reception with friends after tying the knot in their native South Africa.

“My side of the family is Muslim and we had the religious side of our ceremony with my family,” she says.

Their new home is a rental but Shaik says there are “definitely eyes on the market – we’ll wait for things to cool down just a little bit more”.

Sana'a Shaik and her dog "Yumi". Picture: John Appleyard

Shaik’s latest release Nomad was filmed as Covid hit, taking her “to every continent on the planet” – including Antarctica – before production was halted by the pandemic. Shot with “a really talented group of girls”, TV series Class of ‘07 has also launched on Prime Video.

As for the move, Shaik admits she is no Marie Kondo.

“I just grab everything, chuck it in the car and sort it out when we get there. We’re probably going to start fresh, from scratch. It’s exciting to figure out what is my own style.”

Who: Sana’a Shaik

Where: We’re moving to (Sydney’s) Inner West from the North Shore. I’m going to miss how quiet it is, but it’s far away from Jordan’s work and Annandale is a bit more central. Inspiration: I love to bring the outside in. Plants bring a real sense of energy and life.

Home means: (Something) ever-changing and alive. I’ve had so many homes and I’ve moved so many places. I also define Australia as being a good home. I really connect with the people and the place – the land, the weather and the lifestyle (all bring) a greater sense of home.

ACTRESS SANA’A SHANIK’S FAVOURITE THINGS AT HOME

Alien themed terrarium

Out of this world. Picture: John Appleyard

Jordan killed it twice and I had to re-pot it twice. A lovely florist said, ‘We’re going to go for an alien theme’. I said, ‘Yeah, that sounds cool’ and I chucked in Rick.

Gold standing lamp

Just an Ikea find. I don’t really like downlights, they’re so harsh. We’ve just got a couple of lamps around the place that we switch on when it starts getting dark. It’s so nice, moody and warm. It creates really nice shadows. It’s stashed behind the monstera – when it’s on all these cool shapes (appear).

The gold lamp. Picture: John Appleyard

Kindle

The Kindle’s been a really good addition – I can travel anywhere with it. I do still really love my paperback books but (it’s great) to be able to read when it’s dark when you’re travelling.

greek sculpture candle

It’s so clever. It looks like a real bust. There’s a really nice Medusa one that I really want to get. I don’t think I would ever be able to light it.

ALDI cast iron dutch oven

Exactly the same. Picture: John Appleyard

I was going to buy (La Creuset), then you look at the price and think, ‘Surely not’. I bought three or four. My mum was like, ‘Get me one too’ – they’re so good. Exactly the same.

Yumi the silver dapple dachshund

She has the funniest little personality. She loves to be cuddled in the morning but doesn’t like to be touched at all at night. If she’s sleeping on the couch next to you and you touch her, she gets up and walks away.

Potted monstera

Getting big. Picture: John Appleyard

I’m hoping it gets massive. I’ve staked it, I’ve repotted it, it got a bit sick, I brought it back to life – it’s my little big plant baby. It’s such a cool plant, I really love it. I’m such a weirdo with plants. I stare at the leaves.

Sodastream

When he was growing up, Jordan’s mother never let him drink soft drink. ‘You can have soda water, it’s the same, it’s got bubbles’. That’s what we do. We just drink bubbly water all day.